Treasure every day

Bonsai is often misunderstood. People think it’s about making trees small. About control. About decoration. That’s outdated. Modern bonsai is about time, scars, and survival . Take the famous Yamaki Pine . It’s over 400 years old . It survived storms, neglect — and even the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in 1945. The tree looked calm. Untouched. For decades, no one knew its story. Today, it stands in the U.S. National Bonsai Museum not as a plant, but as a living witness to history. That’s not decoration. That’s storytelling. Or look at Kimura Masahiko’s bonsai . His trees don’t look “perfect.” They look ancient . Deadwood is exposed. Trunks are twisted, broken, scarred. Why? Because in nature, trees don’t grow straight and clean. They survive. Kimura changed bonsai forever by treating damage not as a flaw, but as beauty. Modern bonsai artists don’t ask: “Is this tree pretty?” They ask: “What has this tree been through?” A hollow trunk might show light...

 At some point in the future, there will be animals that humans talk about the way we talk about dragons. Not because they were mythical. But because they no longer exist. Extinction is often imagined as something ancient — dinosaurs, ice ages, natural disasters. But the truth is much closer, much quieter, and much more recent. Many species didn’t disappear because the planet rejected them. They disappeared because humans arrived. The Dodo is the most famous example. It lived on Mauritius, an isolated island with no predators. For thousands of years, the Dodo had no reason to fear anything. It didn’t need to fly. It didn’t need to run. When sailors landed in the late 1600s, the Dodo didn’t flee. It walked up to them. Humans hunted it for food, but that alone wasn’t enough to wipe it out. The real damage came from rats, pigs, and dogs that humans brought along. They destroyed nests and eggs. Within less than a century, the Dodo was gone. It didn’t lose a battle. ...

 Around the world, many countries share the same story. They grow fast. They escape poverty. They industrialize. And then… they stop. Not because of war. Not because of disaster. But because growth quietly runs out of fuel. This is called the middle-income trap . What “Getting Stuck” Actually Looks Like Let’s make this concrete. Take Thailand . Around the year 2000 , Thailand’s GDP per capita was roughly $4,000 (PPP-adjusted). At that time, expectations were high. Thailand was called “the next Asian tiger.” Fast forward more than 20 years . Today, Thailand’s GDP per capita is still hovering around $7,000–8,000 in nominal terms. That’s progress — but painfully slow. Two decades of factories, exports, and globalization for a gain that richer countries achieve in just a few years. That’s what the middle-income trap looks like: not collapse — stagnation . Malaysia: Better, But Still Stuck Malaysia did slightly better. In the early 2000s, Malaysia’s income per...

  The Uncomfortable Truth About Investing There’s a popular belief that smart people make better investors. In my experience, that belief is not just wrong — it’s dangerous. Over the years, I’ve made money in the most boring way possible. And I’ve also lost money in the most “intelligent,” well-explained, and exciting ways imaginable. The contrast between those two experiences taught me more about investing than any book, course, or market commentary ever could. This is not a story about genius or failure. It’s a story about discipline, ego, and the lies we tell ourselves . 1. The Boring Decision That Actually Worked In 2020, I started buying gold. There was no grand strategy. No complex macro model. Just a simple observation: massive money printing, rising uncertainty, global instability. Gold felt… boring. And that was exactly the point. I didn’t trade it. I didn’t watch the price every day. I didn’t try to time the market. I just bought it — and held it. Year...

 It sounds strange, but research shows that smart people are more likely to stay single longer . A long-term study by the University of Zurich followed over 17,000 people in the UK and Germany from their teenage years into their late twenties. The result was surprising: The higher the education level, the later people start romantic relationships. And the pattern is even stronger among men. So why does this happen? First, high standards . Highly intelligent people tend to look for partners who match them intellectually. That immediately shrinks the dating pool. For members of Mensa — the top 2% IQ group — this preference is especially strong. Many simply refuse to settle for someone they can’t deeply connect with. Second, over-optimization . Smart people are used to analyzing, comparing, and waiting for the “best option.” But relationships don’t work like exams or investments. The more you optimize, the longer you wait — and the easier it is to miss real opportunitie...

 You’ve probably heard people say: “Getting angry is bad for your liver.” It sounds like an old saying - but modern science actually supports it. When you’re angry or under stress, your body releases stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline . These hormones cause: Higher heart rate Higher blood pressure Higher blood sugar At that moment, your liver has to work harder to regulate blood sugar, manage energy, and process stress-related toxins. If anger and stress become chronic, studies show the liver may experience temporary oxygen shortage , increased inflammation, and higher levels of fatty acids that can damage liver cells over time. High cortisol levels also weaken the immune system, making the body more vulnerable to infections and slowing down recovery. So anger doesn’t destroy the liver instantly - but constant anger puts the liver under continuous overload . To protect your liver: Learn to manage stress and emotions Practice deep breathing, walk...

 Modern schools are very good at teaching knowledge and skills . Math. Coding. Engineering. Business strategies. But when it comes to character and ethics , they mostly stay silent. That’s not a mistake. It’s a structural choice. Schools teach what can be standardized . You can test math. You can grade coding. You can certify technical skills. But character? How do you test honesty? How do you score courage? How do you grade responsibility when no one is watching? You can’t. So education systems focus on what’s measurable—and ignore what’s essential. There’s also a deeper reason. Teaching ethics is dangerous. Real ethics requires: Debate Moral disagreement Questioning authority Talking about power, responsibility, and consequences Most systems don’t want that. It’s much safer to teach how to solve problems than when you shouldn’t solve them . That’s why schools produce people who are: Technically competent Highly skilled Emotionally an...

 Every country wants its own Silicon Valley. They build technology parks. They offer tax incentives. They announce national startup programs. And almost all of them fail. Because Silicon Valley was never a blueprint. It was an accident of history. Silicon Valley didn’t start with startups. It started with war and universities . During World War II and the Cold War, the U.S. government poured massive funding into Stanford and nearby labs for radar, electronics, and defense research. That money created engineers, not entrepreneurs. Companies like HP came first. Startups came later. When people try to copy Silicon Valley, they usually copy the wrong part: the buildings, not the ecosystem. Look at the real ingredients. Silicon Valley works because capital accepts failure . In the U.S., venture capital assumes most startups will die. That’s why Google, Airbnb, and Tesla were allowed to lose money for years. Try copying that in countries where one failure ruins your reputation, a...

 People love to believe startups succeed because founders are smarter. But reality is much simpler. Startups succeed more often in developed countries because the system is designed to absorb failure . Take the United States. Google didn’t start as a company. It started as a failed search experiment at Stanford. Amazon lost money for years. Tesla nearly went bankrupt multiple times. In the U.S., bankruptcy laws protect founders, venture capital expects losses, and failure becomes experience—not a life sentence. That single fact changes behavior. When failing doesn’t destroy you, you take real risks. Now look at Israel. Companies like Check Point and Mobileye didn’t come from garages or hype. They came from military units solving real cybersecurity and computer-vision problems under pressure. The Israeli government funded early R&D, private investors took over later, and failed founders recycled into new startups. Failure there is fast—and reusable. Then there’...

 At first glance, Greenland makes no sense. It’s geographically part of North America. It’s closer to Canada than Europe. Yet politically, it belongs to Denmark , a small country thousands of kilometers away. This isn’t a mistake. It’s the result of history, empire, and modern geopolitics. Why Does Greenland Belong to Denmark? 1. It Started with the Vikings Greenland was first settled by Norse Vikings around the year 985, led by Erik the Red , a Norse explorer from Iceland. At the time: Iceland and Greenland were part of the Norse world This world was politically tied to the Kingdom of Norway So from the beginning, Greenland was connected to Scandinavian rule , not North America. 2. Denmark Inherited Greenland Through a Union In the late Middle Ages, Denmark and Norway entered a political union known as Denmark–Norway . When this union dissolved in 1814 , a treaty forced Norway to cede: Greenland Iceland The Faroe Islands to Denmark . So Denmark...

Ever notice how people say East Asians are “naturally” good at math? That sounds like a compliment. But it’s actually wrong. Because this has almost nothing to do with genetics. It starts with language . In Chinese, eleven is literally “ten-one.” Twelve is “ten-two.” The math is built into the words. Explain that to an English-speaking kid trying to memorize “eleven” and “twelve.” Next comes culture . In many East Asian societies, being bad at math isn’t a talent issue—it’s a practice issue. Fail a test? You don’t quit. You do more problems. That mindset alone changes everything. Then there’s history . For over a thousand years, exams decided who escaped poverty and who didn’t. Education wasn’t optional—it was survival. That pressure got passed down, generation after generation. And here’s the part people miss. East Asian schools don’t teach math as inspiration. They teach it as training . Repetition. Drills. Mastery. It’s not glamorous. But it works. Add survivorship bia...

Walking on four legs is the default design for mammals. It’s stable, fast, and mechanically efficient. Yet humans are a rare exception—we walk upright on two legs. This wasn’t a random choice, and it wasn’t because humans were “more intelligent.” The shift to bipedalism is one of the best-documented transitions in evolutionary biology , supported by fossils, anatomy, and biomechanics. 1. Fossil Evidence: When Did Humans Start Walking Upright? One of the strongest pieces of evidence comes from Australopithecus afarensis , a human ancestor that lived about 3.6 million years ago . The Laetoli Footprints (Tanzania) In 1978, scientists discovered fossilized footprints preserved in volcanic ash at Laetoli. What makes them important: Clear heel strike Weight transfer through the foot Toes aligned forward (not grasping like apes) These footprints are indistinguishable from modern human walking , proving upright walking long before large brains evolved. This alone kills t...

 Most people think power comes from land, population, or armies. But the modern world runs on water. A few narrow sea routes, maritime chokepoints, carry the world’s trade, energy, and food. And countries that sit on these routes don’t need to be big. They just need to be unavoidable. The most important route in Asia is the Strait of Malacca . This narrow passage connects the Middle East to China, Japan, and South Korea. Around a quarter of global maritime trade flows through it. So much traffic, so little space, one blockage could choke Asia’s economy. And one country turned this risk into wealth: Singapore . With no natural resources, Singapore built its entire economy around ports, logistics, and efficiency. It didn’t own the sea, but it mastered how the sea moves. Move west, and you reach the Suez Canal . Suez is artificial, but its impact is very real. By cutting through Egypt, it shortened the journey between Asia and Europe by thousands of kilometers. About 12 percent o...

 People often ask: Which language is spoken the most in the world? The most common answer is Chinese. But that answer hides more than it reveals. What people casually call “Chinese” is not a single language. It is a group of languages—Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien, Teochew, Hakka—many of which are not mutually intelligible when spoken . If the same standard were applied in Europe, Spanish, French, and Italian would never be counted as one language. Yet for political and statistical convenience, they are merged into a single massive number. Mandarin appears dominant mostly because of population size, not because of global function. The vast majority of Mandarin speakers are native speakers using it within one cultural and political sphere. Very few people learn Mandarin as a neutral bridge language between different societies. English is different. English is spoken by so many people because it is useful , not because of population. Most English users are not native speakers. E...

Big national ambitions always sound inspiring. Governments talk about nuclear energy, domestic car brands, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and “leapfrogging” into high-tech economies. The message is simple: study these fields, sacrifice now, and you will become the builders of a powerful future. But across many countries, the reality tells a very different story. In India, large-scale semiconductor fabrication plans have been announced for over a decade, yet projects are repeatedly delayed, redesigned, or canceled due to cost, technology access, and supply chain limits. Thousands of engineers are trained, but only a small fraction ever work on real chip design or manufacturing. In Indonesia and several Middle Eastern countries, nuclear energy programs sent students abroad for years, only for projects to stall under political pressure, financing issues, or public opposition. Graduates returned home to find no reactors, no labs, and no industry waiting for them. In Vietnam, nuc...

 At first glance, a duck may seem ordinary. But from a biological and engineering perspective, ducks are one of the most versatile animals on Earth. They can swim, dive, walk, run, and fly - all with the same body. This is not accidental. It is the result of millions of years of natural optimization. A Body Designed for Multiple Environments Most animals are specialized for one primary environment. Fish are built for water. Birds are built for air. Land animals are built for the ground. Ducks are different. They are designed to operate efficiently across air, water, and land . This makes ducks a rare example of a true multi-environment animal. Webbed Feet: More Than Just Swimming Tools A duck’s webbed feet are often associated with swimming, but their function goes far beyond that. When swimming, the webbing spreads wide, pushing against water and generating strong forward thrust. When the foot moves forward, the webbing folds in, reducing resistance. On land, the ...